Eatokra’s mobile app lists nearby black restaurants.
Courtesy: Eatokra
When Anthony Edwards Jr. and his then-girlfriend Janique first moved to Brooklyn in 2016, they struggled to find food that was comfortable and familiar to them.
Edwards said they explored their neighbors, but it was difficult to find a black restaurant nearby. There are few resources to do this except group chats and informal lists. So, encouraged by Janique, now his wife, he used his computer science degree to create a platform for users to find Black-owned restaurants.
The two co-founded Eatokra, the app now has 20,000 monthly active users and has earned about $700,000 in revenue in 2024.
“When we put it in the world, we saw people immediately attracting us, telling us frankly, ‘I’ve been looking for apps like this,’ we still hear what we are today,” Eatokra CEO Edwards Edwards, told CNBC.
They are not the only ones. In 2020, Brax Rich is seeking a way to support black-owned restaurants and amid the Coovid pandemic. He launched Black Foodie Discoverer, which started as a social media space to highlight restaurants. Black Foodie Finder now has 1.3 million Instagram followers and has restaurants, chefs and recipes in its app.
“I think we have a lot of influence,” Rich, CEO of Black Foodie Finder, told CNBC. “We’re going to focus on a restaurant, and what I know is the owner’s social media post, ‘Hey, where are all your newcomers from?’’’
Here are how these platforms showcase black-owned businesses and black food professionals:
Eatokra hopes to enhance independent restaurants
Eatokra co-founders Janique and Anthony Edwards.
Courtesy: Eatokra
Eatokra users can search for black-owned restaurants, catering providers and food trucks based on keywords or proximity. There are about 20,000 businesses across the United States that can browse in their databases, including their location, user reviews, contact information and online ordering options. Named after the plants used in displaced dishes in Africa, Eatokra also lists black-owned foods on its market.
The platform offers two levels for businesses seeking to join the database: free Lite option and paid and subscriptions, offering additional features, online business courses, and more space on the app for $9.99 per month. Edwards said membership is Eatokra’s main business model.
Eatokra’s current partners include catering companies Ezcater and Pepsi Dig In, Pepsi An initiative aimed at promoting black-owned businesses. It also has apple Map to help produce local guides to black owned restaurants.
Map features on the Black Foodie Finder app.
Courtesy: Black Gourmet Discoverer
Jason Wallace, director of commercial solutions and food service educator at Eatokra, said the company provides resources on topics such as marketing, supply chain and restaurant growth.
“That’s exactly what independent restaurant owners need,” Wallace said. “There is a mom and the popular aspect that needs to be perfected so that they can develop those CEO skills, those COO skills that Eatokra brings. Frankly, for the operation,” he said. It was refreshing to be alone and not there.”
Ken Polk, executive chef and partner at Batter & Berries, said the Chicago-based restaurant joined Eatokra a few years ago to increase its visibility, especially among travelers who may use Eatokra to find local black-owned businesses.
“I think this platform is clever, especially in today’s era where things are buried and it’s hard to find something,” Polk told CNBC. “It’s a beacon.”
Eatokra’s efforts to build a community for black-owned restaurants ended up at its culinary creative conference, which debuted in New York City in October, Edwards said. The one-day event allowed approximately 500 attendees to connect, spotlight suppliers and discuss business strategies.
In October 2024, a group at the Eatokra Cooking Creative Conference in New York City.
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The most meaningful part, Edwards said, was seeing people find mentors and make strike deals with other businesses. He hopes to finally plan a multi-day conference.
“This conference is designed to be an incubator, a catalyst for current and future entrepreneurs to get education, get the communities and networks they need,” Edwards told CNBC.
Jeremy Joyce, founder of Black Peobles Eats website, said Eatokra provides a platform for restaurants without marketing activities. He told CNBC that he discovered many restaurants through Eatokra.
“What they do is very impactful. Because I did this research and there was no other app doing what they were doing,” Joyce said.
Clark Wolf, founder and president of restaurant consulting firm Clark Wolf Company, said the rise of Eatokra is a growing representation and recognition of the black diet. The moment of culture. He cites the success of 2021 Netflix documentary “Hig on Hog: How African-American Food Changes America” and the success of James Beard’s award-winning chef Kwame Onwuachi, as examples of growing interest.
“This is in American culture, and even if there is a push against it, we have been acknowledging the impact of black history, African Americans on food and agriculture,” Wolf said.
Nevertheless, Eatokra and its supportive businesses are still raising challenges. Wallace said food prices fluctuated, President Donald Trump pushed for more deportations and consumer disposable income, which are potential headwinds for independent restaurants.
“We are still determined to continue to do what we are going to fight for and who we are going to fight for,” Edwards said. “That won’t change.”
Black Foodie Discoverers Promote a Food-loving Network
Black Foodie Discoverers are a one-stop shop for everything from food and drink in the black community, Ritchie said.
Richie said social media is the “meat and potato” for black foodie discoverers, which is often the portal for new immigrants BFF.
Find Chefs in the Black Foodie Finder app.
Courtesy: Black Gourmet Discoverer
“It’s really just a community, and when we emphasize these people, make sure we put them in the best shape,” Ritchie told CNBC. “It’s the best reward to be honest. It’s a secret seasoning .”
On the BFF app (with 75,000 active users and about 15,000 restaurant listings), users can find nearby black restaurants as well as profiles of local chefs and recipes, such as Peach Cocker.
Heather Rose, CEO of restaurant consulting firm Black Ink Team, said BFF’s focus on chefs has facilitated the business by visiting with the people behind them.
“This brings you directly into the creative drivers behind the business,” Ross told CNBC.
An attendee showed off drinks on September 1, 2024 at the inaugural BFF Cooking Restaurant at Black Foodie Finder in Memphis, Tennessee.
Courtesy: Black Gourmet Discoverer
Black Foodie Finder has previously signed with the company partnership, but its main source of revenue is its BFF Cookout, the food festival in Memphis, Tennessee, where the company is located. The first tableware in September, including Clorox-Owned charcoal company Kingsford brings about 3,000 people to Tom Lee Park for food vendors and musical performances.
Ritchie said that cooking is important to him, from families who love child-friendly shows to suppliers who get fairly paid, it attracts everyone. He told CNBC that the festival will return this year and he hopes to expand it.
“At the end of the event, our suppliers came to us and were like ‘I want to follow wherever you go’.”
Ritchie also hopes to establish a BFF media presence. The company is currently considering making short shows and video clips that highlight restaurants on TV.
On September 1, 2024, serve food at the BFF Cooking Store in Memphis, Tennessee.
Courtesy: Black Gourmet Discoverer
This is part of Rich’s vision for Black Foodie Finder as the preferred space for highlighting the business.
“Most businesses and most people in the food space are experts in food,” Ritchie said. “Sometimes, they just don’t have the platform or support to grow. That’s what we are. We are the support system.”
